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A NASA spokesman said: 'The Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM) is the future of Landsat satellites. It will continue to obtain valuable data and imagery to be used in agriculture, education, business, science, and government.'

LDCM will join the aging Landsat 5 and Landsat 7 satellites in orbit and continue to produce stunning pictures of Earth’s surface along with a wealth of scientific data.

VIDEO NASA Launches Landsat satellite

Preparations: A rocket carrying an Earth observation satellite is scheduled to blast off from the California coast today on a mission to keep a continuous eye on the planet's resources

Vital: A NASA spokesman said: 'The Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM) is the future of Landsat satellites. It will continue to obtain valuable data and imagery'

Preparations: A truck moves the first stage booster of a United Launch Alliance Atlas V to Space Launch Complex-3E at Vandenberg Air Force Base in October

LDCM will measure Earth’s surfaces in
the visible, near-infrared, short wave infrared and thermal infrared,
with a moderate-resolution of 15 to 100 meters, depending on spectral
frequency.

For four
decades, Nasa's Landsat satellites have looked down on Earth -
monitoring natural disasters, watching cities such as Beijing expand and
watching resources such as water.

The
satellites images have provided critical data on human population
growth and changes in the planet, including the first 'full' images of
Antarctica.

The maps, created by a team involving Nasa, Google and the University of Maryland researchers, used images from the Landsat satellite

Twisting: The graceful swirls of the Mississipi river, captured by Landsat in 2003

Record: NASA¿s Earth-observing Landsat fleet has the longest unbroken data stream of Earth¿s surface as seen from space

The camera takes pictures in
visible light and infrared, and 'cuts out' clouds to provide a complete
library of pictures of Earth.

Last
year Nasa said, 'This continues the Landsat program’s critical role in
monitoring, understanding and managing the resources needed for human
sustainment such as food, water and forests.

'As
our population surpasses seven billion people, the impact of human
society on the planet will increase, and Landsat monitors those impacts
as well as environmental changes.'

With
the longest unbroken data stream of Earth’s surface as seen from space,
NASA’s Earth-observing Landsat fleet has provided the world with
unprecedented information on land cover changes and their residual
effects since 1972.

The $855 million mission is managed by NASA and the U.S. Geological Survey.

Important role: The satellites images have provided critical data on human population growth and changes in the planet, including the first 'full' images of Antarctica

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NASA prepare for Landsat satellite launch which will reveal hidden beauty of Earth's landscapes from space